Germany

Following the arrest of an 'IS' bomb plot suspect, German conservatives are calling for stricter security measures. Authorities believe that a Syrian refugee, Jaber Albakr, was planning an attack at a Berlin airport.

Faced with the arrest of a Syrian refugee on the suspicion of plotting a terrorist attack, Germany's Conservative Union - made up of German Chancellor Angela Merkel's Christian Democrats (CDU) and their Bavarian sister party, the Christian Social Union (CSU) - is calling for more stringent security checks on asylum seekers.

"Every asylum seeker in Germany must be checked with every international terror suspect database," CSU politician Hans-Peter Uhl told German paper "Die Welt" on Tuesday.

"The secret services should finally get full automatic access to core data banks of asylum seekers," he added.

Germany's Social Democrats (SPD) and the Left Party rejected calls for the secret services to have more power, however.

"It was quite sufficient at the time that reception agencies, foreigners and asylum seekers authorities, the Federal Agency for Labor, the authorities responsible for job-seeking agencies, as well as registration authorities had access to the core data system of asylum seekers," Katja Kipping, chairperson of the Left Party, told the "Die Welt."

"We live in a state of law in which laws apply to all," Kipping added.

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German police arrest suspected bomb plotter

Sufficient legal foundation

Vice leader of the SPD faction Eva Högl also told "rbb-Inforadio" that she saw "absolutely no need for action" and that Germany already has "sufficient legal foundation."

"We shouldn't act all populist and actionist after every incident, as if our security agencies weren't adequate," Högl said.

"I think this is dangerous because it signals to the population that we don't have everything we need - and that's not true."

In fact, a BAMF spokeswoman told DW that although individual interviews had been replaced with multiple-choice questionnaires during the height of the bureaucratic crisis caused by last year's influx of refugees, the authority currently carries out interviews with anyone applying for asylum in Germany.

Even during the crisis, she added, individual interviews were carried out in all cases where a refugee's identity could not be established.

Högl also rejected demands from the Union to allow arrests on the grounds of someone being a "danger to public security and order." The measure would allow authorities to detain of known suspects as a precaution.

"You can't just imprison any person who could potentially be dangerous," said Högl.

Bomb plot suspect Jabar A. was arrested after three Syrian compatriots detained him in Leipzig

Explosives found in Chemnitz

The dispute over increased security checks on refugees was prompted by Monday's arrest of bomb plot suspect and Syrian refugee Jaber Albakr.

"We received intelligence that he initially planned to attack trains in Germany," Maaßen said. "Later, the plans became more specific and directed at airports in Berlin."

Three months on since a series of violent incidents in Germany, the country remains on edge. In July, 10 people were killed in Munich after a teenager opened fire in a shopping mall. Several of the incidents - with also included a detonated suicide bomb and an ax attack - were carried out in the name of 'IS,' prompting concerns that Germany could soon be the target of a major attack.

How photos can humanize Berlin's refugee children

The people behind the photos

Shahed is living at the Internationales Congress Centrum in Berlin, where Daniel Sonnentag photographed refugee children for his series "They Have Names." "I want to introduce the people behind the abstract term of the refugee because I believe that when humans start talking to each other and getting to know each other, they'll recognize that we all have more in common that the opposite," he says.

How photos can humanize Berlin's refugee children

The burden of memories

Elham, around eight years old, is a Kurdish Syrian. Photographer Daniel Sonnentag noticed that she always seemed to have a deep sadness in her eyes, but there are other times when she is just like other kids her age, laughing and playing. Sonnentag says, "When she is happy, through the combination of her melancholy and the happiness of the moment, something very special happens."

How photos can humanize Berlin's refugee children

The waiting game

Ali, around four years old, is from Iraq. His family's asylum application was recently denied and they are now in the process of finding a lawyer to have the decision overturned. Many others at the Internationales Congress Centrum camp in Berlin have been waiting for as long as a year on a decision regarding their legal status.

How photos can humanize Berlin's refugee children

"You can only get so far"

Zainab, 8, and Ruqaya, 6 are from Iraq. Sonnentag describes the administration of the refugee situation in the city as "chaotic" and that organizations like Malteser Hilfsdienst are doing the best they can. "But you can only come so far, sitting in a nutshell with only a spoon in an ocean of problems, administrative failure, growing xenophobia and lots and lots of personal tragedies," he says.

How photos can humanize Berlin's refugee children

Learning the language

Sonnentag, pictured with Zainab, describes her as "smart, witty and very grown up for her age." Like many of the children in the camps, she has picked up the German language very quickly. But it can be harder for the adults to learn, so projects like tandem language exchange projects prove very useful.

How photos can humanize Berlin's refugee children

We are more similar than different

Pictured is Alma, 6, and her 33-year-old father Ahmed. Sonnentag says the best way to support people is by going to the camps and helping out. "We all eat, drink and sleep and all we want to do is raise our families in a safe place. When humans start talking to each other and getting to know each other, they'll recognize that we all have more in common that the opposite," says the photographer.

How photos can humanize Berlin's refugee children

The children behind the headlines

Sonnentag describes Zahraa as "silly, dreamy, tender with a huge heart." The seven-year-old is from Iraq.

How photos can humanize Berlin's refugee children

Family life in Germany

Aya, 6, and her seven-year-old brother Hamsa are from Syria. They are in Germany with their younger sister Alma and six-month old brother Rayan. Sonnentag describes Hamsa as a "wonderful, sensitive boy" and says that since he has "two great, loving and strong parents he will become a strong and honest man."

How photos can humanize Berlin's refugee children

From conference center to refugee camp

The Internationales Congress Centrum (ICC) was once one of the biggest conference centers in the world. In 2014, it was closed in order to remove asbestos contamination, but was reopened earlier this year to provide accommodation for the many refugees arriving in Germany. Today, some 600 people live in the center, including refugees from Syria, Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan, Eritrea, and the Balkans.